§1722C — Title 38 Veterans' Benefits | U.S. Code

§1722C Copayments: prohibition on collection of copayments for first three mental health care outpatient visits of veterans

Title 38 › Part PART II— - GENERAL BENEFITS › Chapter CHAPTER 17— - HOSPITAL, NURSING HOME, DOMICILIARY, AND MEDICAL CARE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER III— - MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS RELATING TO HOSPITAL AND NURSING HOME CARE AND MEDICAL TREATMENT OF VETERANS › § 1722C

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Veterans owe no copay for their first three outpatient mental‑health visits each calendar year that would normally require one. A visit means seeing a qualified mental‑health professional mainly for mental health care or substance‑use treatment. Medication copays under section 1722A still apply, and the rule ends five years after enactment of the Joseph Maxwell Cleland and Robert Joseph Dole Memorial Veterans Benefits and Health Care Improvement Act of 2022.

Title 38, §1722C

Veterans' Benefits — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Except as provided in subsection (b), notwithstanding section 1710(g) of this title or any other provision of law, the Secretary may not impose or collect a copayment for the first three mental health care outpatient visits of a veteran in a calendar year for which the veteran would otherwise be required to pay a copayment under the laws administered by the Secretary.

(b)The prohibition under subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to the imposition or collection of copayments for medications pursuant to section 1722A of this title.

(c)In this section, the term “mental health care outpatient visit” means an outpatient visit with a qualified mental health professional for the primary purpose of seeking mental health care or treatment for substance abuse disorder.

(d)This section shall terminate on the date that is five years after the date of the enactment of the Joseph Maxwell Cleland and Robert Joseph Dole Memorial Veterans Benefits and Health Care Improvement Act of 2022.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The date of the enactment of the Joseph Maxwell Cleland and Robert Joseph Dole Memorial Veterans Benefits and Health Care Improvement Act of 2022, referred to in subsec. (d), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 117–328, which was approved Dec. 29, 2022.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2023 Amendment Pub. L. 117–328, div. U, title I, § 193A(b), Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5440, provided that: “The amendment made by subsection (a) [enacting this section] shall apply with respect to mental health care outpatient visits occurring on or after the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 29, 2022].”